“It's pretty sturdy. Well done.” Baker grinned at me and I grew more irritated.

  I turned my attention back to the hexes, looking for the right combination to save our asses. I set aside a slime trap. “Why are you doing this?” I asked. He's an ego-maniac, so keeping him talking should buy me some time.

  “Doing what?”

  “He's your cousin.”

  He laughed. “I know you're not lecturing me on family loyalty.”

  Oh no. My stomach lurched in panic. Not this.

  “You put your old man away for petty crimes back when you were in the Academy, didn't you?”

  I clenched my jaw and kept looking for the right spell. My bubble wouldn't hold much longer. What if I had left it back at the apartment? It was one of my oldest hexes. Maybe it got lost somewhere. Panic drove me, and my fingers fumbled through the hexes, dropping a few here and there.

  “Old news. He did the crimes, so he had to pay.”

  “But it embarrassed a lot of powerful people when he started talking.”

  “They shouldn't have been doing shady shit,” I ground out the words as I glared at him.

  “I like that expression on your face, Alvarez. It's the same now as it was then. Remember the day your mom kicked you out of the family? After the Council and Baba Yaga gave him hard time for crimes against mortals?”

  I found the hex I was looking for. Thank the Goddess.

  I met his gaze with my own and hated him more in that moment than I think I'd ever hated anyone in my life. He was trying to get under my skin, just like all the others. And with that, I drew together the shreds of my dignity and relied on the shield of sarcasm. “You're one to talk. How is it living in the shadows of your cousin all your life? Must really burn you to know the entire world and your family revolves around this guy.” I ran my fingers through his soft, dark hair. “That family stuff of mine is old news, dude. I dealt with that years ago. It must suck to be this incompetent.”

  His fist slammed against the shield. “You have no idea who you're up against.”

  “Whooo, so scary,” I said as I twisted my expression into a parody of terror. “Nothing more terrifying than vague threats about general entities of power. Save it, Baker. What's next? Threatening my life? My magic? Destroying my family? We haven't spoken in ten years. The only thing I have is right here with me.”

  “This shield won't hold you forever.”

  I looked down at Mark Anthony and spoke barely above a whisper, knowing his incredible hearing. “Can you infuse a hex with your power and trigger it?”

  “I can. If it's ready to go. And simple to trigger.”

  “When I trigger my next hex, I need you to empower this one, immediately.”

  “Okay.”

  I placed the hex under his paw.

  “You're running out of options, Alvarez. Open the shield. Let me take my cousin someplace safe. He shouldn't be here right now. He should be working on his hexes while being protected by the family.”

  I snorted. Someplace safe? It sounded like John had an even harder time than I have since we parted ways. “Ready?” I asked.

  “Yes.” Mark Anthony's paw pressed the slime hex spell against John's chest.

  I touched the worn and torn hexpaper, the spell mark dark and smelling slightly of peanut butter. I placed it as far from us as possible, right on the edge of the dome.

  “What are you doing?”

  I cast the spell and a giant cloud of brown smoke erupted from it. Almost instantly, my body clenched in agony.

  “Now,” I yelled, realizing Mark Anthony had already cast his spell.

  The slime coated us, creating a shell that covered us in darkness. I touched a hexmark on my jacket, and the area inside the shell glowed enough for me to see John's face.

  “Peanut butter?” he asked in horror.

  I nodded. My skin itched like mad.

  “You're allergic to peanut butter. Why did you do that?” He gripped my arms, pulling me close enough to see the panic in his gaze.

  I smirked. So he did remember me. “Kitchen Witch Academy Allergy protocol.” Oh, Goddess, my body burned as the peanut smoke invaded my clothes.

  A more powerful shield surrounded us, dampening Baker's voice.

  “This isn't over! You'd better make sure nothing happens to him, Alvarez, or when I get to you, you'll end up back on street corners selling hex scams for pennies.”

  “Oh, ouch,” I said as I cradled John's head in my arms. “Do you think he practiced that one in the mirror? He had a perfect sneer and everything.”

  “He's an idiot.” He reached up and cupped my face, gaze laser-focused on me. “Where is your Benadryl?”

  “Fresh out.” My allergy wasn't that bad, just super annoying. Like right now. I wanted to rip off my clothes and claw my skin raw. Peanut allergies are the worst.

  “He's gone. And so are the others,” John said with a sigh.

  “You're taking your cousin’s betrayal pretty easily.”

  “Am I?” He seemed amused. “I'm not sure he betrayed me.”

  I focused on his voice as the light began dimming within the shell. “Read the room. He is definitely not on your side.”

  “He gave me back my hex books. Why would he do that if he was going to betray me?”

  I stared at him, wondering if that stun had rattled his brains. “He stole my stun artifact and used it against you, intending to frame me. He beat against my shield, determined to drag you back to your lab.”

  He winced. “That doesn’t mean anything.”

  “At this point, I don't trust anyone. And you shouldn't either.”

  “I trust you.”

  His words pierced a hole through the emotional walls I'd built brick by painstaking brick after his betrayal. After my family turned their back on me. My father had scammed thousands of mortals out of their hard-earned money and used that to fund a dirty operation behind the scenes of some of the most powerful witches in our world. My family complained about how much they hated it, but they still accepted his payoffs. They called it taking care of the family, but I knew it for what it was...bribes to keep our mouths shut.

  I made the mistake of telling John about this, back when we were kids. He was the only person I told, so when the Council got word, I knew he'd betrayed me. The Council brought me in for questioning, and then my dad was put away.

  The day I had to go on the stand was the day my grandmother and mom disowned me.

  “You shouldn't put your trust in me.”

  “Why? Because you have integrity? He doesn't know, but I do. I know you sold hexes to pay back the mortals your father scammed, and that every extra penny you have goes to hex supplies and inks so you can continue helping others.”

  I sucked in a breath, the itching staying steady and annoying in the meantime. “Are you stalking me or something?”

  He choked on a laugh. “I felt like I owed you. Veronica–”

  Panic twisted inside me. Being stuck to him while I was being eaten alive by itchiness was not the time to do this. “No wait, is this the time to talk about this? The Kitchen Witch Academy Security Team will be here–”

  A loud crash echoed around us. “Speak of the devil,” I muttered.

  The slime hex was dissolved and bright sunlight poured in, nearly blinding me with its sudden intensity.

  “We have an allergic reaction to what appears to be peanut butter.” A voice broke through my thoughts.

  “Yeah. It's a skin rash. Benadryl or an anti-allergy spell should–”

  “Giving her full dosage.” A spell crashed down on me, dragging my consciousness with it.

  “No, it's not that serious,” I called out. They didn't listen to me and went straight for the allergy KO. It was the anti-allergy spell to end all allergy spells. And in a few minutes, I was going to pass right out.

  “What happened to you?” John's face appeared in front of my bleary gaze, slightly fuzzy. It took a moment to realize where I was.

  “I'm in your lap, now,” I murmured with a slight laugh. I felt super woozy, like an all-night bender of energy drinks and casting blood hexes. Something I only did once and would never try again.

  “What happened to her? Why is she this color? We need to get her cleaned up so we can see the depths of the allergy.

  “Why are you covered in paint?” John asked.

  I looked down at myself and sighed. My clothes had bright splashes of color. I looked like a paint mixer blew up in my face.

  “Ahh. It's not paint. It's food dye,” I said with a slight giggle as the Security Team 'ported us away from the residual peanut butter smoke hex. The slightly jarring effect made my head spin. “The kids. They got me good.” I touched my face.

  “This is food dye from a modified exploding water hex. There's also chocolate and cream somewhere on me. They even cursed the doorknob with a Rejection Spell so I couldn’t go back inside the classroom. That's cheating, right? You don't use curses in a hex class.”

  “Is that why you came back?” He asked quietly.

  “I need ingredients to counterattack. And you promised me spell ingredients.”

  “I did.”

  “And you never break your promises.” The itching finally stopped, and my entire body felt heavy and boneless.

  A pained expression crossed his face. “I try not to.”

  “Yeah. Me too,” I muttered as the spell's effects finally took me down.

  As I slipped into darkness, I wondered why John was so calm during all of this. And doubted whether he would mention anything about the wrecked yurt or his cousin's betrayal to the KWA administrators. And to be honest, I couldn't blame him.

  9

  Veronica

  The lecture about my safety and the safety of others when experimenting with food hexes droned on for eternity. Long enough for my allergy to wear off and for the dye spells on me to fade to nothing.

  The door opened and John stepped through, his familiar on his shoulder and concern obvious in their body language. “How is she doing? He asked the doctor when the interruption stopped his tirade mid-complaint.

  “She'll be fine. It was a minor allergy, thankfully, but it could have been much more serious.”

  “Thank you.”

  “She's also had her magic restricted for 24 hours.”

  Yeah, that part sucked. But John's shock and instant angry expressions made me feel a bit better. “Her allergy didn't affect her magic. Why would she–”

  He had the power to fix this. Would he do it? “It's okay, John,” I said with a smile. “Unless you'd like to tell them more about what happened?”

  “Veronica...” his voice trailed off and I clicked my tongue in irritation.

  I held up my hand. Figures. They always pick family over honesty. “Don't bother.”

  “She was punished for leaving her classroom unattended.”

  “Then you should punish me, too.”

  “Impossible,” the doctor smirked at John. “Our prize hex-genius Alumni could never do wrong in the eyes of the administrators.” He packed up his spells and potions, shoving them deep in his bag as though furious with the world.

  “Thanks for your care, doc. I feel like a million bucks.”

  He sniffed in irritation and stalked out of the room, lab coat flapping in the wind.

  “I don't think peanut butter smells that bad,” I said as I sniffed myself. When in pain, kick out a joke or two.

  “Why did they punish you?”

  I stomped into my boots and tied them tight. “I got off light. When they asked me what I was doing, I mentioned that you were my boss and that I was required to help you in your experiment.”

  “You told them I caused the peanut butter smoke bomb?”

  “Yeah.” I grabbed my bag from the side table. “Otherwise, they would have called the Council for endangering the students and I would have faced a fate much worse than this tiny punishment.”

  “We can get it lifted.”

  I wiggled my fingers and felt the slow churning of my magic power. “You had your chance to fix this, but chose to stay silent.”

  “I have to. This is family business.”

  “Yeah. I know exactly how that goes.” I stood up too fast, and my steps were unsteady.

  When John reached for me, I pushed his hand away. “I'm fine. Leave me alone.”

  “Where are you going?”

  I shouldn’t have been disappointed, but his refusal to take action devastated me. “Home.” I walked past him to the door. “If I even have one anymore.” I mean, if Baker betrayed his cousin and set me up, what were the chances of me still having a roof over my head? Probably nonexistent.

  He reached the door at the same time I did, slamming it shut when I pulled it open.

  “Get away from the door,” I ground through clenched teeth.

  “Not until we talk about this.”

  “There's nothing to talk about.”

  “How about the fact that I still haven't thanked you for protecting me.”

  “Oh?” I gazed up at him with a smirk on my lips. “Now you're okay with me protecting you? Too late, man. Didn't you know? I was hired as a scapegoat, not for my skills.”

  “It doesn't matter why Alexander hired you. I’m thankful to you because you're an innovative, intuitive hexxer who can help me get these kids on the right path.”

  I gripped the bag strap digging into my shoulder. “You sure that's why? Isn't it because of some misguided guilt you have from when we were kids?”

  I would have laughed at the shock on his face if I wasn't so disgusted at the moment. “You're so quick to run and tell the powers that be when a girl in your class mentions something illegal her father did. But when it comes to your family, you say nothing, telling me to keep my mouth shut to protect them.”

  His hand fell away from the door. “Have you always known I was the one that told them about your dad?”

  “From the beginning. You and your cousin both think I'm an idiot. I'm not hanging around to take another beating from your family.” I jerked open the door and stalked down the hallway.

  “Where are you going?”

  “I told you. Home.”

  He chased after me. “Don't go.” He jumped ahead of me and held up his hands, palms out in supplication. “Please, at least hear me out, first.”

  I closed my eyes for a moment and let all the anger and humiliation flow through me and out, breathing slowly while praying to the Goddess for the patience I needed to get through the rest of the day.

  “There are things going on that I can't explain right now, but I wasn't lying when I said I needed you to help these kids.”

  I opened my eyes and glared at him.

  “And I wasn't lying when I said you were an innovative, intuitive hexxer. I was surprised to see you again, but the moment I did, I realized you were the answer to my prayers. I need you to help me.”

  “I'm not a teacher. I'm a fixer. A hex trap specialist. Hell, I don't know if I even have that job anymore.”

  “You have another one. This job. Help these kids. Keep my program alive and give them a place where they belong.”

  I snorted. “Hexxers like us will never belong anywhere. Just look at the way that asshole doctor treated us.”

  “Tomorrow, these kids have a chance to change everything. They have to give a presentation to some very important people.”

  I rolled my eyes. Why was this guy asking for a miracle? Wasn't my peanut allergy sacrifice enough? “You need to be in a more secure location where these guys can't get to you.”

  He gently pushed a strand of my curly hair back from my face, tucking it behind my ear. “We will be surrounded by Alumni and more security than you can imagine. I will be perfectly safe. Those kids, however, need someone who can help them shine.”

  “You want me to help them put together a presentation in less than one day that will save your program?” It was a horrible proposal. But the spark of challenge lit inside me.

  “No. We will help them. The high school students are already finished with their group project. I'll join you after lunch.”

  If he was offering to help, that might make the kids settle down a bit. “This is a terrible idea. I am going to fully corrupt these kids and you'll only have yourself to blame.”

  “We need fresh blood in our field. It's growing stagnant. I'm growing stagnant. Even my experiments have very little life to them. This is the only time of the year that I feel truly inspired. I want them to find that spark of creativity that we had.”

  “I still have it,” I said, voice slightly raw from the emotions threatening to spill over.

  “Maybe I can find it again with your help.”

  His sincerity shook me to the core, but a thought niggled at the back of my mind, reminding me that he's doing all this to protect his cousin.

  I thought about the Pepper Jack twins and the other kids in the class that would be kicked out of the Academy if I failed. They deserved their chance to shine. Besides, I still didn't know how they prevented the hex marks from dissolving in saltwater. Maybe they would tell me after the performance. “I'll do it, but you owe me. A curse of agreement. We both agree to the terms and I promise that those kids will more than wow the judges.”

  “Name your terms.”

  “Don't regret it.” I grinned as I laid out a list of demands that would make sure I never had to sell cheap illusion hexes on the streets again.

  10

  Veronica

  I returned to the scene of the crime. Not the scene with the robbery, or the betrayal, or even the crime of eating that horrible hospital food I was offered. You'd think a clinic at the Kitchen Witch Academy would know how to use salt. Or any spice for that matter.

  No, the scene of the crime I was talking about was the doorway to my classroom where food dye, whipped cream, and chocolate still stained the area. It was time for some payback.

  But first, I needed to enter.

  I took my unlock-it-all spell, the one I was saving for the end of the world or a massive escape, and used it grudgingly on the door. I hated using it, but I had zero talent for disarming curses, or casting curses in general. Hexes, sure. Curses were the bane of my existence. That's why I bought artifacts instead of spells.

 

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